Psybient Mix Download - PsyAmb 16

Greetings psybient music fans. It's getting a tad chilly here in Osaka of late so what better way to spend a wintry day than with a few cups of tea and mixing some of my favorite tunes. This mix kicks of with the closing track from GBU's "Wanted" CD of 2006. GBU released some great singles in the early 00`s . The group comprised of some very talented chaps indeed - Dimitry Nakov, Frédéric Holyszewski ( a.k.a Deedrah , Dado , Synthetic ) and Serge Souque ( a.k.a The Antidode , Total Eclipse , Mystery Of The Yeti ). Unfortunately this is the only CD the mini super-group released. I'm a big fan of old spaghetti westerns so this tune , with its Sergio Leone movie samples , became an instant favorite on first listening.

"Arcana" by the "Peaking Goddess Collective" is a slice of pure mellow cosmic jello. This is taken from PGC's astonishing "Organika" CD of 2007. PGC is also somewhat something of a supergroup too. Pearce Merwe ( Flooting grooves ) , Moreno Antognini ( Master Margarita ) and Daniel Symons ( Dymons ) are just a few of the accomplished musicians involved in the collective. More info on this fabulous group can be found at "Peak Records".




(Val)ium follows up next with his track "Perfectly Rational". This can be found on the "Intermittent Memories" release from "Celestial Dragon Records". I definitely recommend checking out the Celestial Dragon site for loads of great albums. The Intermittent Memories CD is a beautiful work of art with mastering from "Simon Polinski" of "Hesius Dome" fame.

"Sinking" by "Sysphe" comes from the "Sonic Atmospheres" compilation. I have featured one or two tunes from that CD in the past. This tune is an ethereal ambient masterpiece which would fit well into any set. Hope we can all hear more from Sysphe in the future.

Next up is "Waterjuice" with their track "Are you Trippy". Waterjuice has been a long time favorite of mine since the release of their "Hyrdophonics" CD back in 2001. Hailing form the West Coast of the U.S, they really stood out at the time as one of the very few American acts making an impact on the global psychedelic ambient circuit. Of course acts like Bluetech and Androcell would follow in later years but at the turn of the millennium Waterjuice was leading the way with their bubbly dubbly tunage. They have released 3 CDs to date as well as having various compilation appearances. For more info check out the "Vaporvent" website.

"Overflow" ( Jürgen Sachau ) jumps in next with his tune "Scintilla". Under the Overflow alias Jürgen has released only a handful of tunes. That's not to say he hasn't been busy. Jürgen has been releasing tunes for the best part of 10 years under a variety of nom de plumes such as Highpersonic Whomen ( some awesome tunes on "Twisted Records" ) and Haltya. He is currently working on a full length Overflow album.

After that we have a tune from "Kliment" titled "The Interstellar Orchestra". I've been really impressed with all the tunes Kliment has released of late. If you haven't heard any of his tunes before then definitely take the time to check them out. Really well produced, polished tunes. Personally I think he gets better with each track he releases culminating in this years release of the "Perpetiual Ritual" CD. Resting somewhere between Shpongle and Androcell, I've tagged this CD as album of the week so be sure to follow the links and check out Kliment's infinite skills.

Moving right along we have the bass savvy "Slackbaba" with a wicked little tune called "Tsenstak". This comes off "Soul Vibration 2" - a really great compilation from 2008. Since the release of the critically acclaimed "And the Beat Goes Om" in 2006, Slackbaba has continued to impress crowds the world over with his unique blend of musical influences. With his second studio album, Perverting Mankind, due in 2009, Slackbaba looks set to push the envelope and blur sonic boundaries just that little bit further. For an interesting interview with Mr Slackbaba check out this link.

Okay, up next we have a tune from a CD that I have been waiting 4 years to hear ! Capsula released his debut CD "Synthesis Of Reality" back in 2005. It made an instant impact on psychill lovers with its use of funky basslines , gated effects and intelligent vocal samples. The track "I Know that I Know" became an instant classic and can be heard to this day in many a DJ set online or at chillout festivals around the globe. With his follow up CD ,"Sense Of A Drop", the madness continues where we left of all those years ago. Much to my delight the new CD also includes a follow up to the original "I Know the I Know" , titled "I Still Know that I Know" ! Brilliant !

The next tune in the mix is an old favorite of mine from what is possibly one of the greatest "released one CD and was never to be heard from again" acts to hit the psychedelic ambient scene ever. "Deviant Electronics" is the name for the amazing output of Ciaran Walsh. In 2000 he released the seminal "Blunt Instruments" CD which brought something new to the scene in the form of intelligent, melodic psybreaks. It quickly became a firm favorite and topped many charts. Shortly thereafter Ciaran disappeared from the scene , never to be heard from again. I've pretty much ruled out any follow up release givin Ciaran's current career as Audio Director at the successful "Zoe Mode" computer games company. Anyway, thanks for the memories Ciaran and good luck with the gaming.

"Tentura" is next up with "Resonance". This is from the "Fire" compilation released by "Altar Records". What particularly attracts me to this tune is the slow build up to around the 4 minute mark where, without releasing it ,you find yourself on top of a jellyfish surfboard riding some 40 foot mescaline pipeline to the glistening shore. Quite a special tune from quite a wonderful compilation. Certainly the best Altar records has put out thus far.

GBU , who opened this mix , are back again with a short little dubish number titled "Pura Vida Interlude". As before this is taken from the "Wanted" CD. Can you guess what movie the samples come from , it's pretty Easy Right ? If you like those samples do check out "That Much Closer To The Sun" by "Abakus" ( a.k.a Russel Davies - son of "The Kinks" founder "Dave Davies" ). Abakus uses the same movie to great effect.

"Take a Walk Outside" from "Shulman" is a real delight to the senses. This is from Shulman's 2002 debut album titled "Soundscapes And Modern Tales" on "Shaffel Records". On release this CD flew to the top of the European chill out charts and Shulman became known as the next big thing , the new Shpongle no less. Along with "Entheogenic" , Shulman stepped into a room of the psychill genre that had up to that point only been occupied by Shpongle ( and various offshoots ). This came as a relief to Shpongle fans who , as die-hard as they are , were still a little disappointed in Shpongle's second albumn in 2001. Shulman would go on to produce three further albums and form record label "Aleph Zero".




The final track of this week's mix is a bit of "Lee Harris" and Ennio Morricone which I slide in and out of each other in an effort to close things of nicely and give a nod to the opening track of the mix by GBU. If you like Lee's trippy ramblings then check out "Alchemy - 30 years of Counter Culture" compilation from "Arkadia Productions". Some real gems on that one !

As always, thanks again for listening and enjoy this psybient show. Now , time for another cuppa ...

Cheers


Artist - Track